


Romance and Royalty

by GlarpNinja



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: F/M, Monsters and Mana, Pike / Meklavar, slight Pidge/Lance - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-11
Updated: 2018-12-30
Packaged: 2019-09-16 01:26:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 13,177
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16944390
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GlarpNinja/pseuds/GlarpNinja
Summary: Another semi-boring and mostly uneventful day at the Garrison meant that Team Voltron had a day where they really didn’t have to worry about some oncoming Galran threat. Keith had gone to a meeting with the Blade of Marmora with Krolia and Kolivan about recon and intel, and Romelle had gone sightseeing with Veronica and the rest of the MFE team. Which meant one thing for the rest of Team Voltron.A Quiznaking Monsters and Mana Session.





	1. Chapter 1

Another semi-boring and mostly uneventful day at the Garrison meant that Team Voltron had a day where they really didn’t have to worry about some oncoming Galran threat. Keith had gone to a meeting with the Blade of Marmora with Krolia and Kolivan about recon and intel and Romelle had gone sightseeing with Veronica and the rest of the MFE team.  Which meant that Coran, Shiro, Hunk, Pidge, Allura and Lance were definitely having another Monsters and Mana session. The group sat down and Coran, being the game master, cracked his knuckles and began the session. Coran began spinning the tale brewing in his head as the party delved head first into the story. “So, after being spared from execution by Duke Medelius Gray of Silverfall, you all learn that Medelius is suffering from a terminal illness...”

~~~

Duke Medelius addressed the party after dismissing the tribunal. “My apologies for the misunderstanding. We’ve found the brigands that had actually commited the crime and they are being served justice as we speak. My wife says you can be of use to us. So, in exchange for your freedom and as further proof of your innocence, I give you this task. The laws of our land require an inheritance ceremony while I am still alive. At the ceremony, I name my heir and the King grants his approval. You must find an heir to the Duchy or my rival, Lord Rowan Cayfire will surely take the duchy of Silverfall for himself.” Valuyun raised her hand. “What about your wife? Couldn’t she inherit the Duchy?” Medelius shook his head. “While she is “Duchess”, My lovely wife Domeena is not of noble blood. She cannot officially take the Duchy of Silverfall.”  
  
Jiro (and by that extension, Shiro), being the lawful good Paladin that he (always) is (regardless of whether Shiro was a clone during the first session or not, it didn’t matter) steps forward and asks “What would you have us do, Duke Medelius?”  Duke Medelius coughed into his handkerchief. “I have a daughter. Her name is Engel. She was abducted a couple of weeks ago. I ask of you to rescue her.”

“Where was she last seen?” Pike asked.

“She was last seen in Ravenhallow.” Duke Medelius managed to say between coughs.

Pike’s eyes widened for a second before returning to a neutral facial expression.

Jiro looked around to the rest of the party “Do any of you know about Ravenhallow? It’s east of here but I want to know what we’re dealing with.” Block was the first to reply. “Nope. I don’t think too much goes on in Ravenhallow.” The rest of the party followed suit.

“Not really? I know it’s a decently big city” Valuyun said

“Nothing.” Meklavar followed.

Everyone then turned to Pike. “What about you, Pike? Do you know anything about Ravenhallow?” Jiro asked. Pike hesitated for a second. “Never heard of Ravenhallow.” he finally managed to say. Jiro turned back to Duke Medelius and asked him. “What can you tell us about Ravenhallow?” After yet another coughing fit, Duke Medelius told the party about Ravenhallow. “Ravenhallow is a city east of the Living River. Not terribly large for a city, but home to a number of incredibly wealthy families. However, there are rumblings... that Ravenhallow is also home to many thieves... and that the criminal underworld in Ravenhallow is larger than the city itself. Some even say that the fabled _Gray Nightingale_ resides in Ravenhallow.”

Block piped up for a second. “Uh… Wh-who is the Gray Nightingale?”  
  
Medelius gave a sound of disbelief. “The Gray Nightingale is _supposedly_ an unbeatable swordsman, a master thief who steals from the rich and gives to the poor and a ghost who walks through walls. A fable. A ghost story told amongst thieves. Some aren’t even sure he exists. _If it even is a “he” to begin with..._ ”

“Whoa. That guy sounds like bad news.” Block said.

Duke Medelius continued. “Indeed. Though, I doubt you’ll ever run into him. There is not much time. You leave tomorrow. Do you understand your assignment?”

The party responded with a chorus “Yes, we understand” among other variations of the phrase.

And so, after the meeting with the Duke, the party spent the rest of the day doing a bit of shopping at the market district of Silverfall and making preparations for the trip to Ravenhallow and all the potential danger that may accompany it. Valuyun and Pike went to the fletcher to buy arrows and bolts. Pike had come into ownership of a light crossbow recently after a situation left him daggerless, so having a backup crossbow didn’t hurt. Both Valuyun and Pike were running low on ammunition after a recent scrape with some shortbow wielding Kobolds. Pike would later join Jiro and Meklavar as they went to the Blacksmith to look for potential new weapons and armor that they could use, with Meklavar upgrading from her usual Steel Greataxe to a Greataxe made of a decent quality Dwarvensteel, which was sharper than regular Damascus Steel. Jiro was content with his Greatsword, but did manage to find a Shield crafted from Elvensteel, which was lighter, but more durable than regular steel. Pike bought a couple more throwing daggers because having 8 throwing daggers on your person isn’t absurd in the slightest. Block went to the Alchemist for healing potions, which he got a bundle of 6 greater healing potions for pretty cheap.

After they finished, The Super High Intensity Team, or The S.H.I.T (a team name lovingly created by none other than Lance and Pidge, much to Shiro’s dismay once he figured out what the acronym of “Super High Intensity Team” was) were escorted by the guards to the gates of Silverfall. The guard stopped them for a second. “Wait here. The Duchess would speak with you.”

Duchess Domeena of Silverfall stepped out from a small room near the gate. “I ask of one more favor” she tells the S.H.I.T as she brings out a small boy with unkempt brown hair, he was short and slender, even for a child, and was no more than six years old. “My husband has been very hard on crime since the famine and Green Pox epidemic left many to leave the city or resort to criminal activites for food and money. I understand there was a misunderstanding that caused your incarceration and trial, but Medelius isn’t usually that lenient. This is Locke. He stole a chicken and was sentenced to exile before your trial took place. Take him with you to Ravenhallow. There’s a temple to Perelandro, the God of Mercy and the Overlooked that’ll take him in. Ask for Father Hoxton and Prioress Clover. They’ll have use for him”

“Okay. We’ll do that. Pike and Meklavar… You two are in charge of keeping an eye on Locke.” Jiro told the two as Locke walked over towards the party, almost gravitating towards Pike.

And so, the S.H.I.T set off, heading east towards the Living River. Ravenhallow awaited them, a young boy in tow, and were not keen on wasting any time. While walking they had learned more about the boy. Locke was an orphan as his parents were killed in the Green Pox epidemic that fell over Silverfall two years prior and went to live with his neglectful and alcoholic uncle. He had fallen in with a gang of young boys and at four years old is beginning his apprenticeship as a thief. Pike took notice of this, much to Jiro’s dismay. Pike took a liking to the child and even gave the boy a small stiletto knife to defend himself with (again, much to Jiro’s dismay.) The child laughed as he affixed the small, sheathed blade to his belt. Dawn turned to dusk and night fell on the road towards Ravenhallow, and so the S.H.I.T decided to take rest in a nearby forest clearing.

Block and Valuyun were the first two to take watch. Nothing too eventful, aside from the odd forest creature scampering by. Before long, their shift was over and it was Pike’s turn to take watch.

Pike had begun to doze off, as it was fairly late in the night. Suddenly his keen khalit ears perked up and caught the sound of whispers and faint laughter, getting fainter and fainter. The laughter sounded familiar. Pike had heard it before... _when he gave his stiletto to Locke_.

**_Oh gods._ **

Something might’ve happened to Locke. He sprang awake and ran into Meklavar’s tent. Sure enough, Locke was missing from the bedroll beside a sleeping Meklavar. Pike ran over to Meklavar. “Fucking hell, Pike. What?” Meklavar asked, as she was shaken awake by a panicked and frantic Pike. “Locke just wandered off. He might be in danger. Let’s go!” Pike said as he sprinted out of the tent “Oh fuck.” Meklavar said as she sprang up, grabbing one of her axes, and running out of her tent in her nightgown after Pike.

They both sprinted towards the sound of Locke’s voice. They finally got eyes on Locke. Who was following a floating ball of light. Meklavar recognized this as a feywild being. A Will-O-Wisp.

_A Will-O-Wisp that just so happened to be leading the young orphan towards a pit of quicksand._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How's that for a cliffhanger, eh?


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where were we? Oh that's right, impending death. Unless Pike and Meklavar can make it in time.

Locke, entranced by the floating ball of light, followed wherever it went and before long, had got his ankles stuck in quicksand that was quickly pulling the rest of his body in. Locke gave a scream. A cry for help in the hopes that someone, _anyone_ would help him. By the time Pike and Meklavar had caught up to the boy, Locke was already up to his chest in quicksand, crying for help as he sank deeper and deeper.  Meklavar made a beeline for Locke while Pike attempted to attract the attention of the Will-O-Wisp. Meklavar tried reaching for Locke, but to no avail, as the quicksand pulled Locke deeper.

“Curse my short arms!” She yelled in frustration. She looked at her axe for a second and got an idea. “Pike!” She yelled out.  
  
“Kinda busy here, Mek!” Pike replied as he took a swipe at the floating fey creature.

“Hand me that length of rope in your pouch!” She yelled. Pike, with one dagger still up, still maintaining eye contact with the Will-O-Wisp, reached into his satchel and grabbed the fifty foot length of rope he used for second-storey work and tossed it at Meklavar, who managed to catch it. Meklavar frantically tied the length of rope to the end of her axe as best she could and lobbed it into the pit of quicksand, with the axe firmly planting itself beside Locke. “Grab on! I’ll pull you out!” She cried out to the young child, who latched on to the rope for dear life as the quicksand had managed to pull him in to about neck level.  Locke was really submerged into the quicksand, and the weight of the quicksand was causing difficulty breathing for the young boy. He was beginning to suffocate. Since Meklavar was in her nightgown, she didn’t have gauntlets to protect her from the rope burn she was getting from trying to pull the child (and her axe) out of the pit of quicksand and couldn’t exactly dig her heels into the ground to get a good footing, either. Even with her natural dwarven strength, the pit of quicksand was proving to be the most intense and dangerous game of tug of war she had ever played.

“Pike! I need you to help me pull Locke out of this fucking quicksand!” She cried out as she continued to fight against the pull of the quicksand.

“I kinda got my hands full here, Mek!” Pike said as he continued to fight against the Will-O-Wisp. Pike dropped his dagger in frustration and pulled out his crossbow, loaded a bolt into it and attempted to take aim against the Will-O-Wisp.

Pike closed his eyes for a second.

 _See your target. Feel the variation in the wind. Take your bead, and..._  

 _Fire._  

Pike squeezed his fingers and pulled the mechanism of the crossbow as the bolt flew at the Will-O-Wisp…

**_And pinned that sucker to a tree._ **

Almost immediately after he killed the Will-O-Wisp, he put away his crossbow and ran to Meklavar’s aid.

The quicksand was strong. The combined strength of Pike and Meklavar was stronger. Before long, both Meklavar’s axe and Locke were pulled clear out of the quicksand. Pike put his hand on the shoulder of Locke and breathed a sigh of relief before pulling both Locke and Meklavar into a tight hug, which Locke and Meklavar soon reciprocated. They remained in the hug for about a minute before Meklavar stood up. “It’s late. We gotta get to Ravenhallow tomorrow. Let’s go.” Locke and Pike stood up and Locke took the hands of both Pike and Meklavar in his own and the three walked hand in hand back to the camp.

Pike looked down on the child with a soft smile. Thank the Crooked Warden he was safe.

It wasn’t long before both Pike and Meklavar’s shifts were over as the sun began to rise. At first light, the S.H.I.T were off, making their way towards Ravenhallow. The party forded the Living River and had a view of the city in the distance. Pike put both his hood and his mask up as a chill ran down his spine.

Upon arriving in Ravenhallow and after a bit of asking around, The S.H.I.T came to learn that if they wanted to learn anything about where Engel might be, they’d have to ask a man known as Richter Barsavi and that most of Barsavi’s associates frequented a tavern called the Last Mistake. 

But before Pike and Meklavar could accompany the rest of the S.H.I.T to the Last Mistake, the two had an order of business to attend to at the Temple of Perelandro. The two, accompanied by Locke went to the (admittedly) large temple to Perelandro and knocked on its gilded doors. Meklavar and Pike were met by a young boy in white robes.  
  
“Perelandro welcomes you to his temple. I am Astoris. How may I come to help you?” Meklavar greeted the boy. “Yes, I’m… looking for Father Hoxton and Prioress Clover?” Astoris perked an eyebrow in slight amusement for a second. “I shall get them for you. Wait here.” Astoris said as he ran further into the temple. A few moments passed and Astoris returned with the Prioress and Father in question.

“Hello, I am Father Hoxton. What business do you have with the temple?” Father Hoxton asked.

“Duchess Domeena from Silverfall tells me you would have use for this child.” Meklavar replied, motioning Locke forward for Father Hoxton and Prioress Clover to see.

“It's been a while since Domeena sent anyone here...” Prioress Clover remarked

“Locke here, was sentenced to exile by Medelius for stealing a chicken. He’s an orphan.” Meklavar explained. 

Father Hoxton put his hand behind his head, looking towards Prioress Clover. “I see. I don’t see any problem with taking him in. Perelandro forgives all.”

Pike’s ears managed to pick up on the faint, almost rhythmic tapping as Father Hoxton was speaking. He recognised that tapping. That was Thieves’ Cant. ‘ _A Thief. We could have use for him’_ He heard Father Hoxton tap in the somatic language of thieves.

Pike cleared his throat to get Father Hoxton’s attention as he crossed his arms. “Sorry. Bit of a cough. You’ll have to excuse me covering my face. I have a bit of a cold. Don’t want anyone getting sick” He said as he tapped something in Thieves’ Cant on his arm for Father Hoxton to see. ‘ _I can understand you.’_ And thus, two conversations occured at once. One in Common, and one in Thieves' Cant

“Who might you be?” Father Hoxton asked. ‘ _A fellow thief, I see.’_  

“My name is Pike. We are adventurers and were asked by Domeena to specifically leave the child with you.” Pike replied. ‘ _I’m guessing you’re not a priest to the Patron of the Overlooked.’_  

“Well, it is nice to meet you both… We assure you Locke will be well fed and taught the ways of Perelandro. He will be taken care of at the temple until he is old enough to work. Either in the temple or elsewhere, but he will always have a home here, we assure you.” Prioress Clover added. ‘ _Our prayers and tithes go to the Crooked Warden. Domeena is our contact in Silverfall. She sends us all the little thieves that get exiled by her husband. We teach them the tricks of the trade, and they become a member of the Falselight Crowns...’_

“Okay. Good to know. We’ll be leaving now.” Pike said, saying his goodbyes to Locke, grabbing Meklavar by the hand as they walked in the direction of the Last Mistake, knowing Locke was in good hands and was gonna grow up to be one good thief.

The Falselight Crowns were one of many criminal gangs in Ravenhallow, and were well respected Thiefmakers and Con artists. Pike was assured that Locke was gonna grow up and pull off some big jobs and for a second, Pike was at ease, proud of the kid, but tensed up again when he remembered where he was.  

Pike looked around warily at the various Greenjacket Guards as they entered the Last Mistake Inn.  
  
The Last Mistake was sort of a monument to the failure of human (among other races’) artifice at critical moments. Covered wall to wall were various souvenirs, each one telling a visual tale that ended with the verdict “not quite good enough.” Above the bar was the chestpiece belonging to a set of full plate armor, with a square hole punched through the left breast by a crossbow bolt. Broken staves, swords and fragmented axes, along with split helmets and torn chainmail that lined the walls of the fairly large tavern.

It was there that they met back with Jiro, Valuyun and Block.

Jiro laid out the plan. “We need to find this “Richter Barsavi” character. Valuyun, Block. You two ask the various patrons. I’ll talk to the barkeep. Pike, Meklavar, you two ask some of the Greenjacket guards.”

Pike felt a pit in his stomach. _Approach the Greenjacket Guard? Is he crazy?_ But Pike bit his tongue and went with Meklavar to talk to one of the guards. This could only go well. Meklavar and Pike approached one of the Greenjacket Guards. “We wish to seek audience with Richter Barsavi about the whereabouts of one Engel Gray.” Meklavar told the Guard.  
  
The Guard in question crossed his arms. “I don’t bloody trust dwarves. Especially ones that are armed to the bleedin’ teeth. You might be trying to kill Barsavi for all I know, what with him being an Elf and all that. I’m gonna save Barsavi the trouble and lock you lot up for questioning.” He said, twisting Meklavar’s arm, before pinning her to the wall with his other forearm as she cried out in pain. Pike wedged himself between Meklavar and the guard to come to her defense. While Pike knew Meklavar could easily defend herself, a physical confrontation with a Greenjacket was not a good idea.

This whole situation was going south. **_Fast._ **

_Pike was running low on options as it was._

“Let her go. Now.” Pike said.

“Yeah? On who’s authority?” The guard asked, pushing further.

The Greenjacket Guard had forced his hand. 

Pike lowered his hood and mask and pulled out the signet ring that he wore like a necklace from beneath his armor, growling furiously at the guard. “On the authority of Lord Evendur Pikeheart III. Lord of the First House of Ravenhallow and Guildmaster of the Catchfire Barons. Now **_let her go._ **”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...and on that bombshell, I'll see y'all later.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The S.H.I.T manage to avoid disaster in The Last Mistake after Pike reveals his true identity and manages to find the elusive Richter Barsavi. In exchange for information about Engel Gray, however, The S.H.I.T must acquire something of interest to Barsavi first.

The guard looked at Pike for a second before quickly unhanding Meklavar and putting his hands in the air. “Lord Evendur. Apologies. I-I… Didn’t know she was with you.” The guard said as he took a knee. “I’ll take you to Barsavi.” Pike quickly motioned the guard to stand up before anyone else took notice.

“Uh. Yeah. Good. Wait outside while I gather the rest of my group.” Pike told the Greenjacket guard before turning to Meklavar. “Alright. Let’s uh… get back to the rest of the group. Tell them we have someone to escort us to Barsavi.” Meklavar simply had a look of shock on her face at the display unfolding before her as Pike went to go get the rest of the S.H.I.T.

Around him, people began whispering. The S.H.I.T quickly becoming the talk of the town since Lord Evendur (who had been gone for 6 years) was amongst their ranks.

The S.H.I.T walked out of the Last Mistake and were greeted by the Greenjacket guard from earlier. “Lord Evendur, I suppose you’re ready to be escorted to Barsavi?”  
  
“Uh… Yeah. I guess we’re doing this. Take us to him.” Pike told him.

As they started walking, The rest of the team started to keep pace with Pike. Obviously having many, many questions.

“So… Let me get this straight. You’re a _noble_ ? Like… a real one?” Meklavar asked.  
  
“Yep.” Pike replied  
  
“With like… a mansion in the city? And like… Land and stuff?” Block was the next to ask.

“Mhmm.” Pike replied again, slightly more irritated.

“Doesn’t being Lord of the First House make you… next in line to be Duke?” Valuyun asked.

“If I wanted to be. Listen. This isn’t important right now. Let’s just get what we need and get back to Silverfall.”

“ _Lord Evendur_ is right. We have a mission right now, and as much as I want to pick Evendur’s brain about his nobility, that can wait.” Jiro told the rest of the group.

“Please, Jiro, I know you mean well, but please don’t call me that. I’m Pike. Same as I’ve been since we met. I just didn’t wanna… divulge this information.” Pike told the rest of the party

“Why not? If you were a noble, why didn’t you tell us?” Meklavar asked.

“I didn’t tell anyone because I hated being a noble. I hated that we marginalised and profited off of the poor and middle class and kept them down. I hated the “holier-than-thou” attitude I was supposed to have. I hated being treated like I’m better than everyone else when I didn’t do anything to deserve it outside of being born. So I became a thief. I stole from nobility and gave it to the poor. I created a reputation out of it and I got my money and my respect that way.” Pike explained.

“Uh… Lord Evendur? If I may interrupt, Barsavi will speak with you now.” The Greenjacket Guard told Pike.

“Great. Good. Let’s get this over with.” Pike said as he walked through the beaded curtain into Richter Barsavi’s estate, with the rest of the S.H.I.T following suit.

Barsavi’s estate was about as gaudy as gaudy could be capable of getting. The gold and purple velvet furniture, along with scented candles that levitated around the room with magic. Various exotic creature pelts used as rugs or taxidermied statues. The latter of which stood shoulder to shoulder with complete sets of golden breastplate armor. Not to mention the various magical oddities that lined the walls like trophies. Sprawled out on the sofa was the man (or rather, the Eladrin) himself; Richter was a fair-skinned individual with purple eyes, a well-kept beard and long black hair tied back into a ponytail. He adorned himself in various pieces of jewelry, such as a single chain earring with a gemstone that dangled about an inch from the piercing itself on his right ear. Around his neck were various gold necklaces. On his fingers, he wore a variety of gold and platinum bands adorned with various precious gems. He was dressed lavishly in a blue, crushed velvet robe and white silk shirt that exposed his chest which bore the mark of the Ivory Crows (another criminal family composed of spies and intel gatherers) just under his right collar bone, clutching a glass of fine red wine as he addressed Pike and the rest of the group.  
  
“Lord Evendur, as I live and breathe. To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?” Barsavi said as he bowed his head

“You’re certainly a hard man to find, Richter. Not unlike your father before you. We’re looking for a girl. Engel Gray. She was last seen here in Ravenhallow, and if anyone knows anything about anyone else in the city… it’s you.” Pike told him

Richter Barsavi sat up. “Straight to business, I see. I know the name of which you speak. But you of all people would know the Tenets of the Ivory Crows, and as Overseer of such a band of… roguish individuals, I must keep those tenets. Thus, information comes at a cost. King Nicovante himself could walk through that curtain demanding information and I’d still ask for… something in return.” Barsavi explained.

“Well, what is it that you want?” Jiro asked.

“As you can see by my estate I am interested in various... oddities.” Barsavi explained as he walked over towards Meklavar. “I want... _your heart.”_ Barsavi said, seemingly taken with the Dwarven fighter.

Meklavar proceeded to slap his hand away. “My _heart…_ belongs to someone else.”  
  
Barsavi gave a laugh as he sat back down. “Relax. I jest. I desire no form of dalliance with… shall we say, people of the fairer sex. What I _really_ want… is a Cynosure Crystal. A lens that will allow me to access a large body of arcane knowledge. As knowledgeable as I am, I only know of one. In the Forest of Light, which is due north of here, lies a hidden, abandoned temple. Once called the Temple of Dohaeris. All I know that a sacred tree lies in front of the temple. The largest of the trees in the Forest of Light. I’d send my own Ivory Crows, but aside from the fact that about half of my active apprentices are a gaggle of bumbling idiots that need more training, I had sent some of my best men to look, but the majority of them didn’t come back So you’ll understand my wariness. Though, the company you keep, Lord Evendur, should be more than enough for what might await you at Dohaeris Temple. Should you obtain the crystal...” he said, as he handed Block a stone with a variety of runes etched into them “This is a Cypher Stone. Use this to get back to me. Simply recite the runes on the stone and you will be teleported back to Ravenhallow. Bring me the Cynosure Crystal, and I will happily tell you where Engel Gray is. Deal?”  
  
“Deal.” Jiro told him, shaking his hand.

“Good. Though, I have heard through the grapevine that the Patriarch of the Gray household isn’t doing so well. I suggest you leave post haste. Ta-ta.” Barsavi told them.

The S.H.I.T embarked immediately. Barsavi wasn’t wrong. Duke Medelius wasn’t long for this world, so if they wanted to get Engel back in time, then they couldn’t be wasting precious time standing around.

Sure enough, they found the Sacred Tree within a few hours, and were right in front of the Dohaeris Temple. From the entrance to the temple, stairs lead down to a room with six statues. The roof was broken in several places as filters of light beamed down as rain fell in, creating puddles on the floor.

“I have a bad feeling about this…” Block said, looking around at the empty temple.

“You have a bad feeling about everything.” Meklavar replied.

However, Block was still shaken“No, I really have a bad feeling about this… Do you hear that?”  
  
“Hear what?” Valuyun asked.

“Buzzing. I hear buzzing.” Pike said, drawing his daggers. Pike looked up into the corner of the temple roof.

A wasp nest.

But not a regular wasp nest. No, a regular wasp nest was about the size of a human head. This wasp nest was about the size of a cask of ale.

**_Out from the nest burst six giant wasps._ **

Block. and Valuyun quickly covered the rest of the S.H.I.T with cover fire from arrows and fire bolts. Jiro and Meklavar swung their weapons at the wasps and managed to hack down 3 of the 6 giant wasps within a matter of a few minutes. Pike managed to pick off two more. But before anyone could get to the last wasp, the wasp managed to land a decisive blow planting its stinger firmly in between Pike’s shoulder blades as he cried out in pain.

“Pike! No!” Meklavar shouted as she sprinted to place her axe firmly into the abdomen of the last wasp. Meklavar managed to split the wasp in two, but the wasp’s stinger was still firmly pierced into Pike’s shoulder as he slumped over onto the cold temple floor with a thud.

Meklavar frantically rushed to his side as she pulled the dagger-sized stinger from his shoulder.

“Block! Pike needs help! Toss me a healing potion!” She shouted in a panic.

While Block fumbled around in his satchel, looking for a health potion, Pike began to convulse and go into cardiac arrest from the Wasp’s poison.

Luckily, Dwarves had a resistance to poison, so she sucked the poison out of Pike’s system  and spit it out, as she began chest compressions.

“Hurry up, Block!” Meklavar shouted.

“It’s in one of these pockets! I swear! Come on… where are you?” Block said, still looking.

“Come on, Pike, stay with me!” She shouted, continuing chest compressions. Meklavar was about to breathe into Pike’s airway to resuscitate him, with Meklavar inches away from Pike's face when Pike turned his head to the side and gave a cough as he began to wake up.

**_Thank the gods. Pike was alive. Unconscious, but alive._ **

 


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> after narrowly surviving being attacked by giant wasps, the S.H.I.T continue moving deeper into the temple.

In a small room past a corridor from the main hall was an empty room, where Pike was carried by Meklavar and Block. In the corner sat a dusty brazier. There was no hole in the roof, and thus the room was dry. The S.H.I.T were given a moment’s rest. Everyone outside of Meklavar and Pike searched the the other rooms in the corridor. Meklavar decided to stay in the empty room and watch over a barely conscious Pike...

..who slowly woke himself up.

“Hey, you’re awake.” Meklavar said.

“Yeah. Alive thanks to you.” Pike replied

“I mean…”  
  
“No. You saved my life. I’d be wasp food if not for you. Not to mention you’re here with me now. I managed to pick these up from a body in the corner before the wasps attacked. I thought you’d like them” Pike, from his pouch pulled a pair of metal gauntlets with some form of magical runes etched into them.

“You shouldn’t have… Thank you...” She said, as she inspected the gloves.  
  
In the dark, damp room, the two stared at each other for a few seconds with fond smiles, their faces inching closer together, as their heartbeats started to quicken. Just as the Thief was about to steal a kiss from the Fighter, the Paladin opened the door, with Pike and Meklavar pulling away from each other as Jiro entered the room.

“Oh, Good. You’re awake. We’ve found another room. Come on.” Jiro told the two of them

Pike gave a sigh as he tried to get up, his shoulder still in pain from the Wasp attack. Meklavar helped him to his feet and gave him a Greater Healing Potion that she got from Block for Pike to have whenever he woke up. Pike took a swig of the healing potion as the wound began to close itself up

The two followed Jiro to a room that stood a single statue. An angel with her hand outstretched, and head turned to her left, as if the statue were looking towards the western wall. The stones were old and cracked. The room was large and the hard rain fell into the room as thunder cracked and lightning flashes were seen from the breaks in the ceiling. The walls were overgrown with vines and algae from years of misuse.

Valuyun ran her finger along a set of runes at the base of the statue. “It’s Sylvan. It says… _Not everything can be seen directly.”_  
  
“What does that mean exactly? Secret entrance?” Meklavar asked.

“Maybe? It’s… cryptic to say the least” Valuyun replies.  
  
“Man, I fucking hate looking for secret entrances.” Meklavar says.

  
“I share this sentiment. Why can’t people just have regular doors? I see no reason why anyone should have such strange, secretive methods of entry.” Valuyun agreed.  
  
“Because some people have secrets they want to keep hidden.” Pike replied, running his fingers along the walls, looking for the aforementioned secret entrance.

“Why not just lock things up in a chest?” Meklavar asked

“Chests are easy targets. If it’s locked, there’s something worth taking inside it.  Chests are usually out in the open and liable to be picked. Plus, you can’t exactly hide an entire room in a _chest…”_ Pike explained. Pike looked around at the room. On the western wall, was a strangely crescent shaped hole. The room was overgrown with vines, which Pike proceeded to tear away at to reveal a mirror on the eastern wall that faced the statue. It was almost as if the statue was looking at itself in the mirror. He looked back at the statue and something was… _off._ There was something in the statue’s hand in the mirror, but when he looked back, the statue was empty handed.

 _Well, that’s interesting._ Pike thought to himself.

Pike reached out towards where the object would be in the statue’s hands, and grabbed the invisible key, which revealed itself to be a crescent shaped key made from pink marble. “Not everything can be seen directly. Sometimes they’re invisible to humanoid eyes. But in a mirror? Perfectly visible.”

“Damn, you figured that out quick, Pike.” Meklavar told him.

“I’m a thief. Getting into restricted places is... kinda my thing.” Pike said as he put the crescent shaped key into the crescent shaped hole. On the northern wall, part of the wall moved to the side, revealing a secret entrance.

 **_“Open sesame.”_ ** Pike said as the secret door to the relic chamber opened. The room was surrounded by bones and the Cynosure Crystal was sat on a pedestal in the center of the room. As the S.H.I.T approached the Cynosure Crystal, the bones around them began to rattle. The S.H.I.T drew their weapons as the bones formed into a large, imposing Bone Naga that was guarding the Crystal.

“We really should have expected something to be guarding the crystal.” Pike remarked.

“Expectations are irrelevant. Our objective is to retrieve the crystal. Now kill the bone creature before it kills us!” Jiro replied before charging at the Bone Naga.

The Bone Naga lunged at them as Shiro blocked the attack with his shield. Meklavar ran up to the creature and swung at his midsection with her axe. Valuyun and Block provided suppressing fire from the entranceway.

Pike managed to distract the Bone Naga by teleporting from place to place while placing shots with his crossbow. Thanks to Pike, Meklavar managed to score some pretty good shots on the creature, but the finishing blow came from Block, who managed to get a critical shot with a lightning bolt. The bolt of lightning struck the injured Bone Naga as the bones of the deceased creature scattered everywhere.

~~~

It was at this point Hunk shot up in pure unadulterated excitement, and began dancing around the table. Hunk’s smile lit up the room as he danced around it in pure jubilation before grabbing Lance and shaking him wildly.

“I’VE NEVER KILLED ANYTHING BEFORE!” Hunk shouted as he pulled Lance into a bone crushing hug.

Hunk was beyond happy. Hunk probably exerted enough energy in his celebration dance to power ATLAS for a month. The celebration dance lasted more than five minutes. And rightfully so, if your first kill is gonna be a Bone Naga of all things. Hunk’s pure joy couldn’t be contained. Shiro gave Hunk a pat on the shoulder as Allura and Pidge applauded him from across the table, giving him his well-deserved congratulations. Hunk eventually tired himself out and sat back down at the table to play some more Monsters and Mana.

~~~

Once the Bone Naga fell, the Cynosure Crystal was up for grabs atop a marble pedestal. The crystal was about the size of a fist, and a beautiful mix of blue and green. The colors seemed to swirl around within the crystal itself. Jiro was about to grab it when Pike knocked his hand away.

“Wait!” Pike yelled.

“What’s the matter, Pike?” Jiro asked.

“Hidden treasure in a hidden temple? You might wanna be careful. It might be booby trapped.” Pike explained.

“You’re right. Do you know how to disable traps?” Jiro asked.

“It’s kind of my thing, Jiro.”

Jiro motioned for Pike to go ahead with disabling the trap, taking a step back in the process. Pike pulled out his lockpicking kit and found his entry point.

Pike slowly began to fiddle with the innerworkings of the pedestal, as the pedestal was indeed trapped like Pike had predicted and worked to disable whatever it was that caused the trap to be active.

**_Pike heard a click and held his breath for a second._ **

Thankfully, Pike wasn’t turned into a porcupine with poisoned arrows, or crushed by a falling ceiling. Pike grabbed the crystal, and after another second of not being torched by flamethrowers hidden in the walls or being impaled by spears hidden in the floor, tossed it to Block, who also pulled out the Cypher Stone given to him by Richter Barsavi and recited the runes on it as everyone else placed a hand on Block. A second passed before a dimension door opened, teleporting the party into Richter’s estate. The man in question was laying across the couch in front of them, still clutching a glass of red wine, clearly impressed that they made it.

**_“Good. I would've been sorely disappointed if you died. But you survived. Congratulations. It’s time I held up my end of the bargain.”_ **


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After narrowly surviving the Dohaeris Temple, the S.H.I.T must find a way to infiltrate the Gala that Engel Gray will be attending, and Pike might just have a way to get himself invited to the party in question.

The party stood in the garrish estate of Richter Barsavi awaiting the location of one Engel Gray. They were burning daylight and Medelius Gray didn’t have long to live.

“I know where Engel Gray is. Trouble is that it’s not as simple as retrieving her from one place and bringing her back to Silverfall. Heavens, no. The person you seek is in Valemark, accompanying one Adric Harkness to the Royal Gala held by Duchess Rayla Branwen. I assume that you, Lord Evendur can get yourself an invitation to said Gala?” Barsavi asked

“I’ll uh… see what I can do. I know I can probably get invited to that Gala, but don’t count on me bringing along any more than a  +1.” Pike replied.

“Okay. It’s getting late so we’ll rest up and plan this out more tomorrow.” Jiro said.

While Jiro was more than willing to keep pushing forward, the S.H.I.T as a collective hadn’t slept in about 3 days. The team headed to the Last Mistake, had a couple drinks, ordered their lodgings and they all went to bed. Meklavar, dressed in a nightgown and pigtails was sound asleep in her bed when there was a knock on her door. She got up from her bed and opened the door to see Pike, who in contrast was fully armored and looking sort of anxious.  
“Pike? It’s almost dawn. What are you doing here?”

“Not much time to explain. Come with me.” Pike told Meklavar.

Pike was certainly acting weird to her, but then again... she had just found out he was nobility less than a couple of days ago. So, she took a chance and decided to trust him. Pike took her by the hand and led her down a maze of alleyways, ducking and dodging the Greenjackets the entire way through before they ended up at the gates of a cemetery.

“What are we doing here?” She asked.

“Shh. Just follow me.” Pike replied. Trusting Pike hadn’t killed her thus far, so what’s the harm in trusting Pike a little more… right? They reached one of the bigger headstones, adorned with a statue of an angel holding a set of scales. Pike reached into his pocket and pulled out a small sack of gold, placing it on the scales. The scales moved and the ground opened up in front of them, revealing a staircase that led downwards.

Pike led her downwards into a larger room where about thirty young thieves were having dinner.

Pike proceeded to shout into the room. “I steal because I must provide for my family!”

The thirty or so young thieves replied back in unison. “Liar!”

“I steal because my environment won’t let me have an honest living!” Pike shouted.

The young thieves shouted back, louder this time. “LIAR!”

Meklavar watched in amazement as Pike ran into the room, jumping up onto the table, raising his fist in triumph. “I STEAL BECAUSE IT’S FUN AND I’M FUCKING GOOD AT IT!”

The young thieves raised their cups in a deafening response “FUCK YEAH!”

Pike looked around proudly at the flourishing group of thieves. “Brothers. Sisters. Fellow Catchfire Barons…” He paused, blowing a kiss at the current congregation before him. “...It is good to be home.” Pike said as everyone cheered. Meklavar caught up with Pike and tugged on his armor to get his attention.

“Pike, this is amazing!” Meklavar told Pike.

“Mek, this… everything you see around me. This is me. I’m not the noble that I was forced to show you at the Last Mistake. I’m a thief and cool ninja assassin at heart.” Pike told Meklavar.

“Wow. So… what do you do down here?” Meklavar asked.

“I… am the Guildmaster. I run the show down here. Though… it has been a while since i’ve been down here.” Pike replied.

One of the older thieves approached the two of them. He was about as tall as Pike, and was armed with signature Catchfire Baron leather armor. He had a mop of red hair and his hands never wandered far from his shortsword. He had a pretty nasty scar over his bright green eyes and he carried himself confidently.  “Pike! It is truly good to see the face of our brave leader once again.” the man told Pike

“As it is refreshing to see your ugly mug once more, Garrick.” Pike replied.

“What’s it been, 3 years? What brings you back down to Ravenhallow after all this time?” Garrick asked

“I fancy myself a hero now. We’re headed to Valemark for a Royal Gala to rescue the daughter of a Duke. Pretty big score if you ask me.”

“Big score indeed. You always did see yourself as somewhat of a hero to the people, so fancying yourself a full-time hero isn’t a surprise to me. What do you need from us?”

“An invitation to the Royal Gala in Valemark.”

“We can get that done. But you're not intending on bringing your whole crew, are you? You’d be safer and less suspicious with a +1.”

“I’m pretty sure we’re not all going.” Meklavar said, managing to interject.

“Who might this be?” Garrick asked Pike.

“She’s my…” Pike began, but quickly trailed off, looking at Meklavar for an answer as to what “they” are. Teammate? Friend? Something more?

“Friend” Meklavar finished.

“Ah. Will this be your +1 to the Gala?” Garrick asked.

“Perhaps. But it is almost dawn…” Pike reminded Garrick.

“Ah! Yes... your... invitation. Rembry!” Garrick shouted, snapping his fingers as one of the smaller thieves approached. “Make sure Evendur Pikeheart III is on the invite list for the Royal Gala in Valemark. Make sure Pike has all his standard party favors, as well. And make sure his +1... _whoever he decides to bring_ is also allowed to join in the festivities.” Garrick told him

“Right away, sir.” Rembry replied as we walked off.

Meklavar and Pike returned to the Last Mistake where they waited for the rest of the S.H.I.T to wake up, so they could figure out who Pike’s +1 would be. They had received confirmation via carrier pigeon that Pike was on the list of people who were invited, and that his invitation included a +1.

And so, the S.H.I.T got to planning.

“So who’s gonna be the +1?” Valuyun asked.

“I assumed it would be you.” Block replied.

“I don’t know about having the best archer on the team be in the stealth role. I would probably place her at a vantage point where she can lay down suppressing fire for me and my +1 should things go wrong.” Pike added.

“Pike raises a good point. Having both of our marksmen unarmed at the Gala could be seriously detrimental should things go loud. I say we have Meklavar accompany Pike to the Gala. That way if things go south, Valuyun can cover you from a tree or nearby building.” Jiro said.

“Me? In like... a dress and stuff?” Meklavar said.

“Oh! It’ll be delightful! We could go dress shopping! Oh, I’m so excited!” Valuyun exclaimed, dragging Meklavar away.

“So that’s the plan. You and Meklavar infiltrate the Gala, find Engel Gray, convince her to return to Silverfall and claim the Duchy before Duke Medelius bites the dust.” Jiro said.

**_“What could possibly go wrong?”_ **


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pike and Meklavar prepare for and enter the Gala and look for their target while trying not to rouse suspicion.

Pike never enjoyed the galas themselves, but dressing up for the occasion was always pretty enjoyable to him. Though the pageantry of dressing up for a gala such as this would always be marred by boring rich people people that would numb his brain with talk of buying a new set of jewelry or how exquisite the wine and cheese tastes or something something boring rich person talk. (He only really pretended to pay attention. Galas were boring and he didn’t really want to talk or listen to anyone there) But nevertheless, it was an opportunity for Pike to show off his dashing good looks.

During Pike’s process of deciding what to wear, there was a knock on the door.

“Who is it?” He asked before opening.  
  
“It’s me.” Meklavar said from behind the door.

Pike walked over to his door and opened it, revealing Meklavar in a stunning green dress. The dress left Meklavar’s shoulders uncovered and flowed down into a sweetheart neckline. Around her neck was a detachable cape that came to about her arms and waist. The dress’ waist was a snug fit and was adorned with a green ribbon around her midsection. The dress fit snugly around her legs and reached well past the floor. She looked beautiful. He took a second to compose himself.

“Uh… hey...Mek, wha- what do you need?”  
  
“Do I look… put together… uh… well off in this dress?” Meklavar asked, blushing slightly as she’s not usually one to wear a dress such as the one she’s currently wearing.

“In what sense?” Pike asked.

“Well… you come from money, right?”  
  
“Yeah…?”

“Right, so… do I look like I come from money?” She asked, giving Pike a smile.

~~~  
It was at this point Lance paused the game for a second to ask Coran a question.

“ _Does_ she look like she comes from money?” Lance asked  
  
“That’s entirely up to your opinion, my boy. I’ve described to you the attire she wears, Pike has travelled with her for a lengthy enough period, it’s based on what you want to base that judgement on, whether it be pure physical appearance, or the person inside… It’s whatever Pike thinks Meklavar would be in his eyes.”

Lance looked Pidge and her Meklavar figurine with fondness for a second before recomposing himself and resuming the game.

~~~  
“Honestly, Mek? You’re too… happy to look like you come from money.”  
  
Meklavar gave a laugh as she wiped away a tear. “I don’t believe that…”

“No.. it’s a definite sign of it is that you hold an… abject misery about you. I can speak to it myself. You… look too much like you and you don’t look enough like something you’re supposed to be.”

Meklavar looked down at the ground for as second.

“I mean…” Pike continued. “If you feel the urge to deeply bullshit, I’d be more than happy to help you.. It’s really not that hard.”  
  
“It’s not?” Meklavar asked.

“Believe me, Mek, it is easy to pretend like you come from money. You just have to be a bit of a dick and wear what everyone else is wearing. What is this about?”

“I come from a pretty well-off family, and they went to these galas a lot and… I was… judged for not being “the lady I was supposed to be” and I don’t look forward to… being judged like that... It’s not important… ” Meklavar replied, waving away Pike’s question.

“I disagree. If you’re concerned about them knowing whether or not you’ve made your money and your fortune… I don’t think that’s gonna be the thing to gain their respect. I think you’re better off with the company you keep and knowing you’re probably better than everyone else.”  
  
Meklavar gave a small laugh as Pike raises her chin with his finger to look into her eyes.

“I’ve known a lot of people with money, Meklavar. **_They are certainly not worth you_ **.”

“Thanks.”  
  
“Besides. If you see someone at the Gala wearing something that makes you feel inadequate, then we can just take it.” Pike said as he put a hand on Meklavar’s shoulder as they both shared a laugh.

From beyond the stairs, Jiro shouted “Are you guys ready yet? The party starts in a few hours and Valemark is an hour away!”

“Yeah! We’ll be down in a sec!”

On the carriage ride to Valemark, Jiro reminded them of the plan. “Okay, so Pike and Meklavar have invitations to the party. You two are going to go into the party, look for Engel Gray and get her out of there as best as you can. Valuyun, you’ll be in an archer’s nest looking for anything suspicious from afar. Block, you and I will be a distance away and will come running if Pike and Meklavar get into any immediate danger. If you need us, the codeword is “Lionheart”, okay?”

“Got it.” the team replied.

“We’re here. Remember your roles and don’t blow your cover.” Jiro said.

Meklavar took a deep breath. She looked towards Pike, who seemed like he was in his natural element. He practically blended in. Butterflies violently formed in her stomach. Pike looked towards Meklavar, understanding her nervousness held out his hand.

“Are you ready, _Lady Meklavar?_ ”

Lady Meklavar. She was a _Lady_ now. Prim and proper. She looked up at him. Pike proceeded to smile at her. With that smile, her anxieties seemed to fade for a moment. A voice. It was faint, but it was still a voice she could hear. The voice assured her that he knew what he was doing. They’ll be fine… **_right?_ ** This by no means was going to be easy, but Pike is a professional thief and of noble blood. Pike wasn’t some thief acting like a noble. Pike _was_ a noble.

“Ready as I’ll ever be.” Meklavar replied.

Pike and Meklavar joined hands and entered the Gala.

The two walked onto the dance floor as the band began playing music.

“Follow my lead.” Pike told Meklavar as he pulled her into a ballroom dancing position. Meklavar had two left feet, so ballroom dancing with Pike was by no means easy, which she proved by stepping on his toes more than a few times as she attempted to get the hang of “following Pike’s lead.” Eventually, she got the hang of it, and the two began to dance closer to Engel Gray.

“Do you see Engel?” Pike whispered.

“Not really? I’m trying to focus on my feet. I’m not exactly a dancer, you know.” Meklavar whispered back.

“You’ll get the hang of it. Keep looking.” Pike told her. Pike caught a glimpse of Engel, so he danced his way over, trying to avoid conversation and look as natural as possible. He managed to weave his way over towards their general area. “I see her, but something’s up with Engel. I’m only catching glimpses but her eyes seem kind of faded. Like they’ve lost their color.” Pike whispered.

“How can you tell?”  
  
“Eyes of a cat. Not quite eagle vision but getting there.”

“I think we’re being eyed by security. You cause a diversion and I’ll grab the nearest blun-” Meklavar started before Pike interrupted her.

“Kiss me.” Pike whispered.

“Wh-what?” Meklavar said, clearly shocked at what Pike had just asked her to do.

“The majority of people turn a blind eye to public displays of affection since it makes them uncomfortable. Kiss me.” Pike explained.

“Oh.” Meklavar replied, understanding what Pike was trying to do. Pike placed his lips on hers, and although Meklavar knew full well that this was no more than a spy tactic and a way to hide in plain sight, Pike was… a surprisingly good kisser. The kiss lingered for a few seconds, causing Meklavar’s heart to race for a few moments, but Pike eventually pulled away, whispering his findings as they continued dancing.

“Okay. I don’t know 100%, but i’m pretty sure Harkness has Engel Gray brainwashed. No idea why, but I don’t think convincing her to come back with us is gonna be terribly easy. Which is why we’re going to have to resort to Plan B.” Pike explained.  
  
“Plan B?” Meklavar asked.

“Come with me and laugh like I said something funny.” Pike said as he put his arm around Meklavar, who proceeded to do just that.

“What’s going on?” Meklavar asked.

“Something I didn’t want to have to resort to.” Pike told her as he led Meklavar upstairs into a side room on the second floor, pulling a small backpack from behind one of the beds. From the backpack he pulled a strange looking tuning fork. Pike tapped the tuning fork against the doorframe as space itself began to warp around him. The regal attire he was wearing was replaced with jet black leather armour adorned with black feathers. A black face mask and hood covered Pike’s face, and around Pike's neck the skull of what seems to be...

... _a Nightingale._

Meklavar’s jaw dropped as Pike jumped down from the balcony overlooking the ballroom, doing a three point landing onto the ballroom floor, addressing the attendees as he stood back up.

**_“I am the Gray Nightingale. Nightmare to the Rich and Champion to the Poor. Consider this a robbery.”_ **


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Gray Nightingale holds the Royal Gala in Valemark at bladepoint. All the meanwhile, a new member joins the Super High Intensity Team.

As the Gray Nightingale stood up, everyone on the ballroom floor took a step or two away from him. Jiro and Block managed to just make it into the Gala as the Gray Nightingale snapped his fingers. As if on cue, random faces near the entrances (whether they be guests or security guards was irrelevant as you could scarcely see a bits and pieces of the Catchfire Barons tattoos that were imprinted on their necks or forearms) barricaded the doors and windows. Just as Jiro was about to brandish his greatsword and attack the Gray Nightingale, the figure in jet black armor caught Jiro’s attention. As the Gray Nightingale began to speak, the figure looked in the direction of the Paladin, raising his right hand toward his face, extending his index and pinky finger and tapping the bridge of his nose with his index finger twice, winking at the Paladin.

\--- [ 3 in-game years prior ] ---  
_By the warmth of the campfire, the paladin stares unblinking into the campfire and is reminded of the tongues of flame that burned his village. The screams of his mother echo in his ears as a single memory loops vividly in his imagination. The memory of a scared 15 year old as his village is burnt to ash and his mother is dragged from his home by Dragon Cultists. He can still feel the cold steel of the dagger as it’s slashed across his face. The blood running down the bridge of his nose and face. The anger in his heart as he swore an Oath of Vengeance against the Dragon Cult that burned his village and killed his mother - The Cult of Kronaz the Eternal._

_Jiro’s usual brooding by the campfire was interrupted, however by Pike, who in Jiro’s opinion, talks way too much to be a thief._

_“Whatcha doin’?”_

_“I’m… ruminating on the tenets of my Oath. Among other things.”_ _  
_

_“...sounds uh... interesting. Listen, I’ve been lookin’ through my stuff and I found like, a cool disguise kit. It should come in handy if I ever need to hide in plain sight. Not that i’d need to since I’m so stealthy. I’ll be like a kiss in the night. They’ll never see me coming.” Pike told Jiro_ _  
_

_“...and..?”_ _  
_

_“I was thinking. What if I DO need to use a disguise or something and I need to secretly tell you it’s me?”_  
_  
_ “Sounds plausible. What exactly do you have in mind?”

 _Pike proceeded to extend his index and pinky finger and tap his right index finger on the bridge of his nose and wink. “A secret handsignal. The extended index and pinky fingers are like my cat ears, and tapping the bridge of my nose is like a nod to that wicked scar on the bridge of your nose. If you see me do that, you’ll know it’s me. ” Pike explained._ _  
_ \---

Jiro’s stance lightened at the sight of the familiar handsignal and he motioned for Block and Valuyun not to attack. The Gray Nightingale gave Jiro a small nod of acknowledgement as he looked around the room. In his heavily distorted voice, the Gray Nightingale continued to speak.

“For the most part, you won’t be harmed. If you follow my orders to the letter, neither me nor my accomplices will lay a finger on you. Some of you will be taken hostage, but if our gracious hosts comply with all my demands, you will be set free. Now. Since this _is_  a robbery...”

The Gray Nightingale proceeded to snap his fingers and pull a shortsword from his side.

 _“ **EVERYONE**_ ** _HIT THE FLOOR. NOW.”_ **At the sound of the snap, the other Catchfire Barons drew weapons as well. At the sight of all the thieves brandishing shortswords, everyone in the room put their hands in the air and laid prone on their stomachs. The Gray Nightingale proceeded to put leather bindings and black bags around the wrists and over the heads of Block, Meklavar, Jiro, Engel, and a few random people at the Gala, escorting them into another room. The Gray Nightingale ordered a few of the Catchfire Barons to keep an eye on the rest of the civilians, making sure they didn’t get up and try and run.

The Gray Nightingale sat his hostages down, tying them to the chairs they sat in and removed the black bags. The rest of the S.H.I.T, understandably had many questions for Pike. Which they all asked at the same time.

“Pike, is this really necessary?” Jiro asked him as the bag over his head was removed.

“This got like, really intense really fast! This was like not part of the plan!” Block said as he began to have a mini panic attack.

“So this is plan B, then? If we’re using a robbery to mask kidnapping Engel, then why the random people?” Meklavar asked.

Pike removed his hood and mask.

“Yes. This is Plan B. It is intense and it is necessary. Harkness has Engel brainwashed, so we’re gonna need time to reverse it. While Harkness’ hands are full with being robbed, we have plenty of time to wipe whatever brainwashing Engel’s been subjected to, and unlike going loud, we don’t put a target on our backs and brand ourselves as criminals. As for the regular civilians, we… might need some actual hostages if we’re gonna get out of here with Engel.”

There was a muffled voice coming from beside Block. Pike removed the black bag over his head. "Got something to say?" Pike asked

“That’s… a really smart plan. Certainly better than the one I had” said the voice in the chair beside Block, through gritted teeth. From the purple skin complexion and bone structure, the person sitting next to Block had to be Half-Drow. Purple, shaggy hair hung over a strong, angry face. Bloodshot green eyes, set buried within their sockets, facing forward, anger clear on his face.

“Dare I ask what _your_ plan was?” Block asked the Half-Drow.

“Grab Harkness by the lapels of his jacket and rip his throat out with my teeth.” The Half-Drow replied.

“That’s… disturbing. I’m pretty sure Block’s scarred for life, but the thing is, you, as it would seem have not just a common enemy in Harkness, but you also seem like you have... skills. Skills that might be useful to us.” Jiro said.

“Seriously? He’s like... rabid! Are you sure he's not just gonna go all hellhound on us as well?” Block said.

“A crew could always use an attack dog. What’s your name?” Pike asked.

“Bray. Bray Riverfire.”

~~~  
Shiro raised an eyebrow at Keith, who had sat down with the group after returning from his meeting with the Blade of Marmora, all ready to play. “Bray Riverfire? That’s seriously your character's name?” Shiro asked him  
  
“What? I think he’s pretty cool. He’s a Blood Hunter, which sounds pretty awesome.” Keith said, clearly pleased with his character.  
  
“Wow, the broody emo picked the class called the Blood Hunter? Shocker.” Lance said sarcastically.

“You’re one to talk, **_Gray Nightingale._ **” Keith replied.

“Hey! I'll have you know that Pike is a very well though out character!” Lance shot back.

“Guys.” Shiro interjected.

“Sorry.” Lance and Keith said in unison.

“Hm. Leave it to Keith to somehow make a self insert character that’s edgier and out Mary-Sues the edgy Mary Sue self insert character already in the party…” Pidge said.

“Come on! I put a lot of thought into Pike’s backstory…”  
  
“I wasn’t talking about Pike, Lance. Pike’s been getting kinda cool lately…”

“Aw, thanks, Pidge!”

Lance and Pidge proceeded to exchange fond looks at each other for a few moments before blushing and turning away from each other as Coran resumed the game.

~~~

“Welcome to the team, Bray... I guess.” Meklavar said.

Pike undid Jiro, Block, Meklavar and new team member Bray’s bindings. Block stepped in front of Engel and waved his hand in front of her, whispering an arcane incantation as he closed his eyes for a few seconds. “Engel seems to be affected by some form of Enthrallment Curse. It’s like a stronger version of a charm spell, where the target can move and speak freely but is unable to form original thoughts. For whatever reason, Harkness put this curse on Engel and is keeping her from taking the Duchy of Silverfall. Maybe Harkness has something to gain from Medelius’ rival taking the Duchy.”

“If Engel took the Duchy, she’d undoubtedly follow in the footsteps of her father. Same policies. Not much change. If Rowan takes the Duchy of Silverfall, Harkness would have the Duke of the biggest city in Dathgryn in his pocket. He’d be able to do whatever he wants. Including turn an underground cult hell bent on turning Harkness into a Lich… into the city’s primary religion.” Bray explained.

“So… Rowan is… like, not good whatsoever. Right. Reversing this spell is gonna take a few minutes. Hopefully we can get back to Silverfall in time.” Block said as he continued to focus on the spell.

“I’ll go make a couple demands in exchange for one of the hostages here. That should buy you some time" Pike told Block

“Since you’re out there making demands, I’m gonna need a Ruby. Brilliant cut and about 500gp worth. Reversing the spell’s gonna take a while but if I can get that gem as a spell focus, it’ll definitely shave off a fair amount of time.” Block explained

“Will do.” Pike said as he put his hood and mask back on before grabbing one of the civilian hostages.

A minute or two passed before Pike re-entered the room with the Brilliant cut Ruby in his hands before tossing it to Block. The Sorcerer held the ruby in his hands and uttered a string of arcane incantations as the ruby began to glow. Engel stared into the gems radiance without blinking for a few minutes and suddenly snapped out of whatever trance she was in.

“Where am I? Why am I restrained? Who are you?” Engel asked

“We are…” Pike trailed off before turning the rest of his team around to speak to them privately.

“Are we... really gonna call ourselves the S.H.I.T in front of her?” Pike whispered to his team.  
  
“We agreed on that name like three years ago.” Block whispered

“I have no idea what you guys are talking about.” Bray whispered

“I agree with Pike. We need to sound professional in front of someone who’s probably gonna be our future employer.” Jiro stated.

“Maybe we can keep S.H.I.T just between ourselves, but yeah. I can stand to do a bit of rebranding.” Meklavar added.

Pike proceeded to whisper something into the ears of Jiro, Bray, Meklavar and Block.

Jiro, Bray, Meklavar and Block all gave looks of approval to Pike as they turned back around to face Engel. Pike gave a grin before answering Engel’s question of who they were.

**_“We are... Arcana Leonis. We were brought here by your father to take you back to Silverfall.“_ **


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After returning to Silverfall with Engel in tow, it doesn't take long for Arcanum Leonis to find another quest.

As it turned out, after they broke the brainwashing spell, Engel didn’t really take much convincing to return to Silverfall and inherit the Duchy of Silverfall. Her father was dying, after all. After a sufficient amount was stolen from the Gala (after all, it was a robbery. They couldn’t exactly leave without taking anything), The Gray Nightingale called off the robbery and the newly branded Arcanum Leonis made a rendezvous back to Silverfall with Engel Gray in tow. It didn’t take long for word to get around the city that Arcanum Leonis did a great deed for the city. The team returned to Duke Medelius and Duchess Domeena.

“We want to thank you immensely for rescuing our daughter. The inheritance ceremony is tomorrow, and as thanks, we also want to publically award Arcanum Leonis with medals of honor as thanks for the great deeds that you have done as Engel’s first deed as Duchess.” Duchess Domeena told the party.

“It would be an honor.” Jiro told Domeena.

As an additional reward from the rest of the city for rescuing Engel, Arcanum Leonis enjoyed free drinks for the whole night on behalf of the owners of the tavern  with compliments from the Barkeep. Newly acquainted to the Hero’s Life, Bray looked into the bottom of his tankard as he ordered his fourth mug of free ale. “I could get used to this.” he muttered to himself. His new teammate, Valuyun put her hand on his shoulder, smiling at him. “This is the best part of the job, Bray. Believe me.” Valuyun said, winking and raising her tankard at the newest member of their wandering troupe.

“I believe it. Where, uh... do we start looking for more work?” Bray asked Valuyun.

“Not very far.” A voice from behind them interjected. “Grysha Larkin. Nice to meet you.” The woman said as Arcanum Leonis turned to look at her. Grysha was a fair skinned human woman with green eyes and jaw length red hair tied back into a ponytail. Although, Grysha’s facial features were not the first thing Arcanum Leonis collectively noticed about Grysha Larkin. The first thing they noticed about Grysha was that she was built like a gods-damned brick fucking shithouse.

“I’m the city blacksmith. My friend has gone missing. I heard about the things you did for the Duke and I was hoping you’d do the same for me. I’ll pay you for the trouble.”

The members of Arcanum Leonis looked at each other in silent agreement that they’d take Grysha’s job. “Okay… who’s this friend that we’d be looking for?” Jiro asked.

“Her name is Ashta. She’s a Halfling Paladin with blonde hair. 2 weeks ago, she embarked on a vision quest and we haven’t heard from her since.”

“Where was she last seen?” Pike asked.

“Anvilforge.” Grysha replied.

Meklavar’s ears perked up when Grysha mentioned the city of Anvilforge. “Oh! I’m from Anvilforge! I can navigate us around the city.”

“Then it’s settled. We’ll leave after the ceremony. There’s no telling what kind of danger Ashta’s in so we can’t waste too much time.” Jiro told the rest of the party. Out of habit, the members of Arcanum Leonis end up sharing bedrooms at the tavern. Normally, Valuyun and Meklavar share rooms, but since Bray joined the team, Valuyun has been making an effort to cozy up to Bray. For whatever reason. So, Meklavar ends up sharing a room with Pike. Meklavar has no complaints about this arrangement since Meklavar can now ask all the questions that she’s been dying to ask Pike about his family, the Catchfire Barons, and about the fact that he is one of the most notorious thieves (if not the most notorious thief) in Ravenhallow. Meklavar changed into her nightgown before laying in her twin bed.

“I suppose you have questions.” Pike said.

“You’d be right.” Meklavar replied.  
  
“Okay. I’ll uh, I’ll answer them. Ask away.”   
  
“How did you end up joining the Catchfire Barons?”   
  
“Back when I was about 14 years old, I was still just a noble, I ended up travelling through the slums of Ravenhallow. There were kids my age starving on the streets and getting sick from the cold. I asked my father why they couldn’t even just have at least one meal a day. Why even though my family had all this money, we didn’t use it to help the people of Ravenhallow that were starving. My father told me that the people in the slums weren’t worth saving. That he held no pity for people that used their surroundings as a crutch. It made me angry. So I ran away from home. I joined the Catchfire Barons, who were just second storey thieves at the time, and I used the money I stole from my family and all the other nobility to feed everyone in those slums. No one deserved to starve. Not on my watch. I gave them enough gold so they could buy bread to keep from starving, soup and blankets to keep warm and other basic necessities.”   
  
“Wow. That’s...surprisingly kindhearted of you.”   
  
“Just because i’m a thief doesn’t mean I can’t be kind.”

“How did you become the Gray Nightingale?”  
  
“I fed the streets of Ravenhallow for a while. Eventually, I developed a bit of a reputation. That reputation eventually got blown out of proportion. Garrick suggested that I use this to my advantage, so I had a suit of jet black armor made, and I became the Gray Nightingale. I did it for a few years and… the character of the Gray Nightingale worked. It made the Catchfire Barons a lot of gold and fed the slums for a long time.”   
  
“Why were you so different when we first met you?”   
  
“The first lesson my mentor taught me was to have people underestimate you. If you were smart, act stupid. I talked a lot and I acted like I wasn’t that good of a thief. But I got to be a hero for a while.”   
  
“It certainly worked. But why act like that around us?”

“I had to act like that around everybody. If you want your enemies to underestimate you, then your friends have to underestimate you as well. Remember when we found out that Lord Draven in Ambershandy was going to wage war against Lord Kiva in Rubyknife?”  
  
“Yeah. He rescinded his declaration a day later.”   
  
“Lord Draven and Lord Kiva were mortal enemies, and yet they negotiated a peace treaty a week later and no one has broken that peace treaty since. Can you remember where we were when that was about to happen?”   
  
“We were in Ambershandy. We just helped the city Arcanist retrieve an artifact from a nearby temple. She was buying us drinks, but you... went to bed early.” 

There was a pause. Pike raised his eyebrow at Meklavar.

“No way!” Meklavar said in disbelief as Pike gave her a grin.

“As much as i’d love to answer more of these questions, we have a long day ahead of us tomorrow. Good night, Meklavar.”

“Good night.” Meklavar said, still shocked that it was Pike that secretly made peace between Draven and Kiva as she went to sleep.

The next day, Arcanum Leonis attended the inheritance ceremony. The newly appointed Duchess Engel awarded each member of the team with medals and a monetary reward. Immediately after the ceremony ended, Arcanum Leonis were off to Anvilforge to look for Ashta. Anvilforge was about a day’s travel south of Ravenhallow, so Pike briefly checked in with the Catchfire Barons before Arcanum Leonis was once again off to Anvilforge. It wasn’t long before Arcanum Leonis arrived at a cave that led to the underground city of Anvilforge. The city itself was split into three levels. Each level was a different district of the city. The topmost level was the City District, which had all the markets, housing and taverns. Below that, was the Business District, which had all the distilleries, stone masonries, and other businesses, and finally below that was the mining district, which as the name implied was the location of the Anvilforge Mine. After a few full days of travelling, Arcanum Leonis were more than eager to rest. Not to mention, they could get some valuable information from the patrons of a tavern within the city. If they could find one. All of the buildings were made of stone, so finding a tavern could prove to be difficult. Meklavar hadn’t been in Anvilforge for 3 years, so she wasn’t exactly sure where to find one, either. Jiro walked up to what seemed to be one of the guards. “Excuse me, where can we find your nearest tavern?” He asked.

The two guards standing in front of Jiro grinned at each other. “Oh, you’ll want to go to the Pig Pits.” It was at this point that Meklavar facepalmed, as she knew exactly where this was going.

“Sorry, the Pig Pits?” Jiro asked.

“Yeah, the Pig Pits, it’s uh... it’s our tavern here.”

“This isn’t some kind of hazing thing, is it?” Valuyun asked.

“No, no. It’s a perfectly good tavern.” The guard stated.  
  
“Oh. Where might the Pig Pits be?” Jiro asked.

“Over there.” The guard said, pointing at an actual pig pen. With an actual pig. Rolling in what Arcanum Leonis could only assume was mud and its own shit.

It was at this point that Pike stepped forward, handing the guard a handful of gold. “Could you please point us in the direction of the nearest tavern?”

The guard took one of the coins and bit down on it with his teeth. “Well, it seems at least one of you speaks dwarvish. You’ll want to go to down to the Tipsy Tankard. Talk to Himmel if you want a room.” The guard told him.

“Thank you.” Pike replied.

They walked over to the Tipsy Tankard, which, like most everything else in the city was a stone built structure. The large double doors and the braziers at the foot of the stairs beside them were made of silver, which was Anvilforge’s main export. They walked into the tavern, which was nearly full of people. (Dwarves, mainly as you would imagine. Even Meklavar admitted that the majority of Anvilforge’s residents were pretty xenophobic.) As the party walked in, they all got glares from the patrons around them and a silence fell over the room. Pike walked forward and placed a hefty sack of gold on the bar in front of the barmaiden, pushing it towards her. “Next round’s on me!” He announced. To that, every single patron in the bar gave a look of surprise. There was a pause before the barmaiden grabbed as many tankards as she could carry and started to pour them to the brim with ale. She looked back at all the patrons looking at her, as she continued to pour.. “Well, he bought you a round, didn’t he?” The gray haired dwarf remarked as the room burst into cheers for the six random outsiders who walked in and bought them all a round.

He walked back to the group.

“Wow, you handled that well. How did you know to do that?” Meklavar asked.

“Nothing gets people’s trust easier than buying them a drink. Regardless of race. I’m gonna see if the barmaiden knows anything about Ashta” Pike replied.

“Good. We’ll ask around and see what the patrons know. Buy them more drinks if need be. We’ll rendezvous upstairs.” Jiro said.

Pike went to talk to the barmaiden.

“Well, if it isn’t Mr. Moneybags. I’m Addra, I run the bar. What can I do for you? Though… maybe don’t buy the bar another round just yet. I don’t think I have enough clean tankards”

“Please, call me Pike. And don’t worry, I won’t buy too many rounds for the bar. I was wondering if you came across a halfling with blonde hair? Paladin?” Pike asked.

“Yeah, I served her a while ago. Asked about how she could get into the mines. Said there was something “dark and malevolent” deep in the mines. Told her to talk to the Adrik Silverspire, since he practically owns those mines.” Addra told him.

“Great. That’s exactly what I need. Thank you.” Pike told her

After a bit of drinking, they all met upstairs.

“What did you find out?” Bray asked.

“Ashta came by here to ask how she could get into the mines. Apparently a guy named Adrik Silverspire owns them. We should talk to him. He’s probably one of the people who saw her last.” Pike explained. There was a pit in Meklavar’s stomach as soon as she heard the name ‘Adrik Silverspire’

“Oh gods.” Meklavar said.

“What is it, Mek? You okay?” Jiro asked.

**_“Adrik Silverspire is my father.”_ **

 


End file.
